By LeftArmSpinner
July 24th 2008 @ 8:47am
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The NRL is one continuous bucks party
It must be winter because the sports pages are full of NRL players getting drunk, abusing women and doing cowardly, criminal things.
This week we had two Canberra players, two Canterbury players, and eight Under-20 players in a brawl.
There are so many examples of this criminal behaviour, that I don’t need to search the archives for more evidence.
But here are a few just in case: Warriors Michael Crockett charged with rape; Hayne in Kings Cross; Kenny Dowall and Sa in Woolongong; Ben Roberts also in Woolongong; Daniel Conn on drugs charges; Ben Pomeroy on assault charges; Mason urinating in public …
We all know the problem, but we would probably still be surprised by the number of incidences.
There is no excuse.
Other people of the same age, with similar cash in their pockets, don’t carry on like this.
Forget the player drain. The class players will soon realise that they can’t afford to rely on this rogue element, particularly when it is not being dealt with.
Carney either urinated on someone’s leg or he didn’t. The evidence points to his guilt and he has form. Lots of it.
A memo to coaches: “Implement the ‘No Dickhead’ rule, for the sake of our teams, your clubs, and the code itself.”
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Andrew Marks said | July 24th 2008 @ 9:09am | Report comment
Could not agree more – Leftie. There is a perception with some young men that it is cool to be offisde with acceptable social behaviour – it gives them “manna” with their mates. This intense testostrone environment is further fuelled by alcohol resulting in extreme levels of juvenile boorish behaviour.
The solution is twofold. Education and ongoing mentoring of these young men is the first step. A non negotiable “no dickheads policy” by clubs – no matter how good a footballer may be, is the second.
This is not rocket science. Look at the wonderful standards of behaviour (on and off the field) set by Wayne Bennett, Paul Roos and Robbie Deans.
LeftArmSpinner said | July 24th 2008 @ 10:09am | Report comment
And before the article is even published, we get more news on the Raiders and allegedly the lengths that they will go to protect Carney.
I thought that Raiders Chairman, McIntyre’s comment was priceless “It is extremely disappointing” “We were just starting to get some momentum and now this.”
This comment makes Mark Wary of Mark loves Sharon fame look positively angelic.
McIntyre didn’t say, this is unacceptable behaviour, he didn’t say it damages the club, he didn’t say it damages the game, as it lurches from disaster to disaster, in the 100th year, mid season and just before the World ???? Cup.
Andrew, it is called the no d*ck heads rule and it applies to every team, old or young, G grade or A grade, sport or business or social! They are not worth the problems they cause.
sledgeross said | July 24th 2008 @ 10:12am | Report comment
While I agree with alot of what you said, we have to distinguish about what we nail people for. I mean, who hasnt gone out for a night and urinated in a place they wouldnt usually? For every 3 “scandals” about night club scuffles, Im sure (judging from my own experience) that at least 1 isnt directly the players fault.
Adrew makes a good point, its about education. These kids are usually from working class backgrounds and leave school at 17 to play footy, they have very little life skills. A bloke like Willy Mason for example. Making 80 grand a year from the age of 16 and living in the big smoke away from family with little support or someone to pull his head in when he goes silly. It is a cultural and social issue more than anything. These blokes SHOULD know that they have obligations.
True Tah said | July 24th 2008 @ 10:17am | Report comment
LAS,
a lot of these young blokes are paid big bucks, play their footy and train.
Get these guys proper jobs and this behaviour will be stamped out, the whole argument about rugby league being the sport of the working man is extinct, these guys are distanced from the working man by a significant margin. There is only so much training you can do in a day, I wonder what these guys do when they are not playing or training.
Having said that, a lot of these Islander boys are either Mormons or Christians, you won’t find guys like Folau or Inu out on the piss because they dont drink. I dont think its fair to tar all NRL players with the same brush, as there are plenty of outstanding young men in the comp, it just takes a few idiots to ruin it.
Andrew Marks said | July 24th 2008 @ 10:20am | Report comment
Leftie, my point is that you have to start with educating the young. That way you deal with and fashion behaviour from the outset.
Andrew Marks said | July 24th 2008 @ 10:24am | Report comment
TT – I cannot agree – just giving these guys “real jobs” is not going to solve this. This is a behavioural issue which gets exacerbated when on the piss, which usually happens out of work hours.
True Tah said | July 24th 2008 @ 10:57am | Report comment
Andrew, maybe the alternative is for these guys to study?
The point is, the life these guys are living is becoming more distant from the average punter. Sledgeross is right in that in most cases, it isn;t the footy players fault, you get some guy trying to be a hero in front of his mates by saying he took on an NRL player and put one on his chin…these guys should really just walk away if they can. Guys like this are wankers, and it says a lot about them that their claim to fame is that they gave some lip to a footy player.
A few years ago Jeremy Paul was bashed in a Canberra nightclub by these sort of guys.
Geoff Toovey CA obviously put the hard work in, juggling footy and his studies. Over in the UK, Dr Felipe Contemponi just finished his Medical degree.
Im sure there are NRL players doing some sort of study, as a hell of a lot of these guys are not earning big bucks like Mason and Co. How come players like Mason aren’t engaging in some form of study or something?
Andrew Marks said | July 24th 2008 @ 11:50am | Report comment
TT, I agree that study is certainly a worthwhile option and should be encouraged. A very good point.
However, the problem is that these guys these are primarily athletes first. They are usually indentified at a young age. Their ego’s are pampered by talent scouts and if they cut the mustard and get a contract, they are elevated, within their community, to almost rock star status. School work, let alone tertiary study, is the last thing on their minds. Combine a young testostrone filled athletic body, with an inflated ego, adoring women, money and alcohol and you have a time bomb wiating to go off.
Again, I would to reiterate, that the problem is behavioural which requires specific education or re-education followed by an on going mentoring program conducted by responsible, emotionally mature and respected men. Once this is in place, then study is the next logical step.
LeftArmSpinner said | July 24th 2008 @ 12:54pm | Report comment
sledgeross, I have never gone out, got pissed and the urinated on a mate’s leg or raped a girl, fled from police or assaulted someone.
We have heard it all before. NRL “education” hasn’t worked, getting jobs doesnt work either, simply because they know that they can get away with it, time after time. Seu Seu was booted from Newcastle and his first landing was at Shark Park!!! Carney palyed up several times and got a $400K contract. etc.
There is a line. it is very clear. Cross over that line and all hell should break loose, for the good of everyone.
Look at what Rugby did for Sailor. He went from not admitting it, to blaming others to anger to now being deeply and sincerely sorry and evangelistic against drugs. he is a better person for it.
Look at what swimming did with Darcy. Finished.
While League continues to ignore the basic principles of society, the game will decline. Money from pokies is dirty money, very dirty money. Criminal behaviour is criminal! The game is the one that suffers and it can only take so much. There is a cumulative effect.
Running charity events for a couple of bucks is now seen as a cynical attempt to distract the public. Yobbos on the Footy Show/s are now seen as just that, yobbos. The public are not that dumb.
Entertainment, be it on the field with strength, skill or tenacity or even some humour appeals to everyone. Funny nicknames (Audi for Junior Waugh when he scored 4 ducks), true characters, (Merv Hughes) victimless pranks within the team and teammates (Shaun Berne posing with a Teddy bear!!!!) or serial pests such as Pidgeon etc are good.
Other sports, and in particular, those in competition with league (and to a lesser extent, AFL) are very competitive in these areas. Soccer players have come to terms with having money and time and being under scrutiny. there are exceptions. the issue for Soccer is their crowds. I know. I was assaulted by a Syd FC spectator at the semi final earlier this year.
Rugby has had its moments. They got tough with Henjak and Saig. And they are now presenting their players and sport around class acts. Tahu is just one. Like Cross, low key, family men, brilliant on the field but respectful for the opportunities given to them. I particularly liked the way Tahu threw the press off the scent when negotiating with ARU. Burgess, Turner, Alexander, elequent, honest, personable, respectful. So grateful of the chance to represent their country.
Michael C said | July 24th 2008 @ 1:10pm | Report comment
I lived on campus at Uni for 3 years, back in the late 80s, early 90s. I lived in share houses too, and I must say – - – that I saw an awful lot of behaviour that would fit exactly with public perceptions of ‘football badboys’ that the public tries to attach :
A. to every footballer on the list
B. to ONLY cashed up professional footballers.
Blatantly wrong.
Most of this behaviour has been learned via upbringings – - – family, friends, school etc.
It’s all too easy to ‘blame’ or point the finger at the NRL or AFL players. However, instead of picking on the odd player who crosses the line (and at the ripe old age of 22 is expected to conduct himself with the wisdom and poise of a 45 yr old?!?!?) – - – we instead need to focus a little more on the well behaved, the positive role models,
and, also recognise that there’s a lot of wannabe ‘victims’ who go hunting out these players – - –
btw – - just recently, we saw a relatively well known Australian tennis player facing a date rape accusation……the accusation made bigger news than the throwing out of the charge – - – - reality is it was a rubbish accusation, however, perhaps, cynics in the media and general public assume that people are paid off to withdraw complaints……..well, on that front no doubt there are many who go seeking that pay off too.
Howe do you win?
Andrew Marks said | July 24th 2008 @ 1:36pm | Report comment
It’s a team cultural thing – look at the Brisbane Bronco’s, Sydney Swans, Canterbury Crusaders and the current Wallabies.
Its about building respect, trust, pride, integrity and camaradarie – all overseen by strong management, both on and off the field.
True Tah said | July 24th 2008 @ 1:43pm | Report comment
LAS makes the point that initially Sydney rugby league was funded by poker machines.
There was uproar in the land of leagues clubs when the new anti-smoking laws came in, and the NSW govt introduced a poker machine tax.
I guess this is another way of saying that sydney rugby leagues clubs rely on smokers gambling away their cash. Maybe this sort of attitude has gone to the players heads.
Andrew makes some good points, and the case of the Broncos, Crusaders and Wallabies, the common denominator is a man of integrity, who gets the respect of his players who listen to him. Are these sort of guys lacking in most rugby league clubs?
Mason has had a chequered history whether it was going on on the piss during Origin, doing cab runners or urinating in public. Its also clear the bloke had bugger all respect for Steve Folkes his coach at the Dogs, given his comments this year.
Do you guys think Mason would have done any of this if he had a Wayne Bennett or a Robbie Deans coaching him?
LeftArmSpinner said | July 24th 2008 @ 1:47pm | Report comment
michael c, uni students and 18-25s generally were typically representing themselves, not others or institutions. they live with the consequences. these guys represent much more and are paid accordingly. they are human beings and must live within societal rules. simple. if they dont want to, fine. no money. no responsibility. they can take it out on the girlfriend/wife.
LeftArmSpinner said | July 24th 2008 @ 1:49pm | Report comment
as for Willie, he probably wouldnt have taken them on, tho i dont think the monkey is pedalling very hard in his head. what is for sure is that he would only do it once. just ask Costigan and Seymour, formerly of the Broncos. Mistake and gone!!!!! give the problem to someone else.
sledgeross said | July 24th 2008 @ 2:00pm | Report comment
Leftarm, its obvious by your elitist diatribe that you are not a rugby league fan, and thats entirely your right, and you do make some extremely valid point regarding personal responsibility. You are talking about exceptional circumstances of anti-social behaviour. Im sure most blokes here have gone out with mates as young blokes and done things (such as urinating in a city side street) that are not socially accepted. So yes, arrest me. I have urinated in a public place, Ive done 115 in a 110 speeding zone, Ive littered before when I havent found a bin, Ive had a push and shove at a dingy nightspot. Lucky we dont have corporal punishment!
The extreme cases you name such as rape and assult should be punished severely, no matter what position in society you hold. No one from any code or walk of life will tolerate that behaviour, nor should they.
I do find it humorous about some of the names you mentioned as upholders of sporting virtue. Mark Waugh, a player who associated with bookies. Merv Hughes and Glenn McGrath, globally acknowledged as two of the more petulent and foul-mouthed sportsman produced by this nation. There are ratbags in EVERY sport, just like there are wankers in every facet of society. Rugby League is under the microscope because their players are the most recognisable and get the most coverage in the Sydney media.
You want to pick on League players specifically, what about blokes like Steve Price, Petero Civaneceva, Hazem el Masri, Craig Wing, Brett Kimmorley, Andrew Ryan and Steve Menzies?
Michael C said | July 24th 2008 @ 2:05pm | Report comment
leftarmspinner -
individuals who’ve gone off the rails must be answerable, certainly.
It’s the breadth of the ‘circles of influence’ for the individual that might dictate the capacity to ‘live with the consequences’. It’s far harder for a fellow who was ‘exposed’ publicly to live down what might just have been a once off incident – - as distinct to we nondescripts who invariably could stuff up totally anon.
It’s the flipside, but – - we all need to retain perspective, some incidents should either NOT be reported (i.e. so minor that there can’t possibly be a public interest being served), or, NOT reported until proven (potential public interest should a guilty finding result, but, in the mean time, innocent until proven guilty rarely seems to apply in the court of ‘football media’). I still reckon we just know too much these days,
that said, for the BIG stuff ups, the serious criminal acts – - – well, certainly, go to town,
LeftArmSpinner said | July 24th 2008 @ 2:17pm | Report comment
sledgeross, Not eliteist at all. played league and union. Just that as a parent, and son of an invalid, i am very sensitive to those that abuse the system.
of course there is the need for perspective. From what i heard of Tilse, he got the rough end of the pineapple and Steve Irwin’s announcement in the paper is similar. but what about the bloke who was allegedly pissed on, and probably pressured into withdrawing allegations. How does he feel, apart from soiled and damp!!!
Just to win a few footy games. Give me a break.
Some of my most memorable games were ones we lost. Like London NZ in the snow!!! Their home ground, wouldnt call it off. there was 6 inches of snow. we arrived to see a bloke in black track suit silhouetted against a white field. They belted us. I dropped almost every high ball, or should i say soap!!! but, geez the warm beer tasted good afterwards. Playing in Fiji. couldnt get an overlap for 3/4 of the game. at first i thought it was the previous night’s cava, and then in desperation, I counted the players. They had 17. No wonder!!!
sledgeross said | July 24th 2008 @ 2:17pm | Report comment
I think we would all agree that Todd Carney should be thrown out of the game and de-registered. Hes only a young bloke but he has had his chance. Lets see how he likes being a builders labourer for a year or two.
LeftArmSpinner said | July 24th 2008 @ 2:19pm | Report comment
michael C, exactly, but league doesnt do that. they are paying the price but too dumb or clouded by self interest to see it coming.
John Ryan said | July 24th 2008 @ 4:42pm | Report comment
Then there were the Rugby Union players in the Pom touring side in NZ who where whitewashed after a rape allegations, people who live in glass houses should not throw stones,but then you get to expect this kind of crap from some RU people
jimbo said | July 24th 2008 @ 4:48pm | Report comment
I remember when Alan Jones tried to throw a bucks party with some undercover cops (boys) in a public toilet in London.
Luckily he was the WBs WC coach at the time and all was quickly forgotten.
Captain Carnage said | July 24th 2008 @ 5:15pm | Report comment
Education, mentoring, “real jobs”, study; none of these will work. The fact is that some people (some NRL players, some carpenters, some CEO’s, some scientists, some miners etc) turn into complete dickheads when they drink. End of story. It’s Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde and the only way they might remember, realise or even acknowledge their behaviour is if you tape an episode of their stupidity and put it on youtube for the world to see.
Westy said | July 24th 2008 @ 11:04pm | Report comment
I tell you what i hate is small minded criticism. Wendell never answered who else was in the room or gave him the coke. Been over the Eastern Suburbs no urban myth to see various young Counsel at parties sniffing a few lines all rugby supporters. Who do you really think has the money for certain drugs of choice. They have better access do it inside and have less cops to worry about.Have to be careful some people are on bail.
Always quick to criticise others. Watching the young middle class princesses vomit all over the gutter on flavoured alco pops.Drinking problem sc where were these bastards 30 years ago. These people are no worse than us.I can be hypocritical but at least I admit it.Some of these rugby blokes have short memories of what use to happen at college at Sydney Uni. It is called being young. Fuck we do some dumb things.
I enjoyed playing league and union and i have no hesitation in saying that given the poorer intial life chances of many league players they did all right. Do you really think you are better? league has nearly 10% of its players as indigenous. What the hell was Rugby doing? When did rugby send their sides to play inmates in jail…Why do more islanders in Sydney play league than their natural game Rugby. I am well and truly sick of it.Does rugby even have a club competition anyone is interested in. That is what it is all about a 16 team professional well publicised competition as opposed to some wank of a comp with Sydnety Uni in it.that most people in Sydney are hard pressed to know anything about. If you want me to follow these blokes around I will get the spitting assaults and piss ups you so despise in league.Problem no one cares.
LeftArmSpinner said | July 24th 2008 @ 11:40pm | Report comment
Westy,
settle down. So the downtrodden league players have no alternative but to behave badly! Please. Criminal behaviour is not just being young, otherwise our jails would have quadrupled in size and still be overflowing.
Tell you still think its just being young when you are standing in the loo, and a drunk guy pisses on your leg. then “people” come in and try to stop you reporting it!!! Or your daughter comes home having been attacked by a drunk. I dont think you would still be calling it small minded or just youthful behaviour!!!
Then, in line with head in the sand, you immediately react on the basis of class: class upbringing, supposed class wars. Leave it out.
The behaviour is unacceptable. It just happens that there are more frequent occurences and those occurrences are not dealt with according to current public opinion and put a game of footy ahead of everything else. I refer you to McIntyre’s comments in the initial post.
Midfielder said | July 25th 2008 @ 12:47am | Report comment
Lefty
S14 has four teams one is out of control, does that mean 25 % of union players are the same.
Using media hype and pointing fingure is easy …….. RL would have in its game the normal population spread. It scares me when people look at the third quartile events and then assume the norm.
Coming from a football back ground we have seen our fair share of poor press, often totally wrong or so overstated / so over the top.
A good example on the 9th of December 2006, soccer fans of the past and present were celebrating the game’s coming of age in a country where it was largely frowned upon for several decades. More than 50,000 patrons attended a league game between Melbourne and Sydney – a new national record. However, the following day the soccer community was once again rolling its eyes at the sensationalist exaggeration used by the media after three patrons were ejected.
That’s right. Three out of 50,000 were ejected.
However our papers, radios and television screens were polluted with stories of crowd violence and emotive language such as “hooligans, lunatic fringe, ethnic violence, walk of shame” used to generate shock amongst the public. Journalists showed videos of fans singing at each other – which is general practice amongst soccer crowds all over the world, every weekend and used this to try and display the “riot”.
Australia has a different sporting culture to other countries – where chanting and singing at sporting events is prevalent at sporting fixtures of all kinds around the globe, we are more used to the bored, drunk, fluorescent wearing teenagers blowing up beach balls and contributing to mindless war-cries such as “Aussie Aussie Aussie Oi Oi Oi”.
After the media made three ejections look like a full scale riot akin to what we would see in World War Three – four weeks later, 190 fans were ejected from the MCG at a one-day cricket match. One could only expect what sort of backlash this would have. However, in typical jingoistic fashion, this was laughed off by the Aussie media as “a few lads letting of a bit of steam” or “boys being boys”.
Why do I mention my football media story is because RL is easy to pick on with its background. If player X did something wrong jail em end of story but please lefty don’t just pick on a code because of sensationalist and acts by a few.
As a famous man a tad over two thousands years ago said, “let he without sin cast the first stone”
Westy said | July 25th 2008 @ 1:42am | Report comment
Leftarmspinner……. serious allegations of rape by current NRL players . Please tell me which player was convicted? I am sure they have been I just need reminding?Tell me what rugby does for those downtrodden souls and it is nothing? The AFL and League has much to be proud of in their work with the underpriviledged and indigenous people of our country. At least they do not chase quokkas. Make it very clear once Rugby provided some leaders we would follow but they are long gone.They were men who were concerned and respected those under their charge…. their amateurism gained them even more respect….. Rugby closed its eyes to ordinary people decades ago and is only interested in professional players.from my area. . Most of the people at the forthcoming test do not even follow the game. That is rugby in Sydney. the Wallabies have had forum at St Ignatius Riverview, Hunter’s Hill……. one day at Fairfield/Liverpool/Blacktown/Penrith no inferiority complex just facts. The NSWRU once told me they would be worried no one would turn up?
The national team that has nexus even with the leaguies is the Soceroos. We actually get to see them in the areas we live. . Each to his own but never worry the days of looking for leadership from Australian rugby are long gone.
John Ryan said | July 25th 2008 @ 3:42am | Report comment
The only people leftarmspinner and his RU mate are interested in are the private schoolboys,and you can read about them in the paper as well, with bullying rife and various other things,RU is irrelevant to 90% of the population of Sydney.
The Leather patch brigade will die out soon enough
Steve Kaless said | July 25th 2008 @ 4:11am | Report comment
Strikes me like just another attempt to bag League players and a pretty poor one.
Left Arm Spinner, I’m not going to defend the list of players you’ve mentioned, and it has already been pointed out that many of the problems aren’t ‘criminal’. And it is always easy to just roll out the ‘education line’.
But sadly I think you’ll find most of this stuff to be a societal problem. You might not like the way a lot of young men behave, but it isn’t just league players, sadly for the league blokes there are always plenty of people willing to ring the Ray Hadley show to say they saw a player having a few beers.
I honestly think if people who are calling for public stonings actually had a think about what they may have got upto on various nights out they might lighten up.
If you think the same thing doesn’t happen in rugby I think you’re setting yourself up for a big fall.
Look at the behaviour of the Western Force this pre-season for example.
Or take a peek at the All Blacks or the English on tour, even Union boys joked about the Bulldogs scandal that the same thing happened in Rugby “they just kissed her after”. Have a look at George Smith’s record of blueing with the public and he is the wallaby captain this weekend!
Of course, looking overseas and you’ll see English Premier League players and American basketballers all taking the proverbial…and not a League player in sight.
And don’t think Timana Tahu suddenly changed his tune just because his paymaster changed, it never helped Matt Dunning.
There are plenty of players in League that would fit your Tahu mould, they just don’t fill the headlines.
In the end, if you are looking for moral guidance from professional athletes you are only asking for trouble.
Enjoy your footy.
LeftArmSpinner said | July 25th 2008 @ 9:44am | Report comment
Midfielder statistician, wrong. Force had two incidents in a season, quokkagate and Henjak. They were slow to react and should be held to account for that. eventually, they responded with the backing of ARU. One player was suspended for half a season. the other was deregistered. The result was no more problems. No criminal charges, no members of public were assaulted.
Football: Conversely, the players the issue is the behaviour of crowd. I have experienced it first hand. Assault by a drunk, ridiculously behaving spectator, spraying beer over 20 people, swearing, pushing patrons etc. He was in a group of 5, all with the same attitude. “I am a big “man” and I am cool. I am using football and its mythical importance, as the basis for criminal behaviour. Again, an idiot completely out of step with acceptable behaviour. He had his son with him too. I had 5 kids with me and needed a police escort to get to the car. Never again.
westy and John Ryan, this thread is not about the code war. it is about behviour, and in the main, player behaviour. Read the initial post. Crockett from Warriors! Still in court.
Steve, I disagree with your post. Let’s look at the factual basis for the article:
1. Assault, rape, Fleeing police, drunk driving, etc. It is criminal behaviour.
2. My article comments on League and league alone. I submitted the article because this week, like previous weeks, we have had 4 examples of this behaviour including a serial offender. Add to this the U20’s brawl, I think 12 players in one week is sufficent to submit the article.
3. On the very next day, and in support of the previous day’s article, we discover that there are allegations of a cover up of previous criminal behaviour.
4. Again, one day later, he get McIntyre’s comments in the press. He encapsulated the mind set that exists, his words not mine. No regard for or mention of the victim, the code or the club. He was just concerned that their attempt to make the playoffs was affected!!!
4. Despite this evidence, neither yourself, Westy or John Ryan say that the behaviour is wrong, unacceptable and damaging the game and the clubs. If you represent the League community, the code has no hope because the community doesnt understand how far out of step this behaviour is and the damage being done to the code.
5. The “societal” argument is no defence. It ignores the authority and ultimate sanction that the code and the clubs have to remove this element once and for all. Serial offenders are not “societal”. They are criminals.
6. I included by personal solution in the final paragraph. This is a tried and tested solution and hardly evidence of a code basher or a class warrior:
I quote, “A memo to coaches: “Implement the ‘No Dickhead’ rule, for the sake of our teams, your clubs, and the code itself.”
Andrew Marks said | July 25th 2008 @ 11:36am | Report comment
Great response Leftie and on the money.
I would like to reiterate for the last time – that this is a behavioural problem that will continue to manifest itself unless it is addressed. Again take a look at Wayne Bennett (Bronco’s), Paul Roos (Swans) and Robbie Deans (Crusaders). These clubs have a “no dickheads” policy. They have good men in charge who have instilled thier own culture and will not accept dickhead behaviour. These men are good man managers (emotionally intelligent) and have all won lots of premierships with this successful formula.
Those of you who believe that this is code war – bullshit – it is about conducting yourself in a civilised and respectful manner regardless of what sport you play!.
LeftArmSpinner said | July 25th 2008 @ 12:59pm | Report comment
Andrew, Sanity prevails. I agree completely. Whether it be Broncos, swans or Wallabies, or social groups or friends or schools, “no dickheads” gives everyone a better chance of success.
As a roosters fan, I was one of the many who were appalled that they signed Mason. It just sends the wrong message to the other players and supporters. Then they further compound the situation by not being able to retain Tupou. I dont get it!
Lets wait for Steve, Westy and John’s responses.
Andrew Marks said | July 25th 2008 @ 1:44pm | Report comment
Thanks Leftie. I live about 110km from Sydney. My young bloke plays Rugby for the local team. As a parent I had to sign a document at the beginning of this season that had a nine point code of conduct clause which included respecting all match officials, respecting all members of the public attending matches and ensuring all kids had an enjoyment of the game. All Players (4 senior sides and 11 junior sides) at the club signed a similar agreements. The club’s first grade and second grade have won the the 3 premierships and the 3rd grade misssed out in the doing the same by going down in last years grand final. Needless to say that going to these games (junior and senior) is an absolute pleasure!
LeftArmSpinner said | July 25th 2008 @ 1:59pm | Report comment
My best example of no dickheads was in my days as a junior cricket coach. After two seaons effectively running a full service, babysitting service for 4 hours on a saturday, I decided to choose the parents for my youngest son’s first season, the U8’s.
I discovered that good parents have good kids. I then did the same with elder son in the following season, and was able to coach both teams concurrently, because the kids were easy, keen and parents were supportive. A true pleasure for all concerned. Kids developed incredibly over the next 4 years.
This is not a new concept and yet elite teams continue to ignore it.
True Tah said | July 25th 2008 @ 3:43pm | Report comment
Treizistes,
there was nothing to celebrates about Vichy France it was a low act in the history of rugby. Guys playing union are not necessarily angels, but the point has been made that there are bad eggs in every sport, as I suppose they represent the society they are drawn from.
As an obvious league supporter, judging from your words, what do you think of leagues clubs in Sydney relying on poker machines to fund themselves…that is profiting from people’s addictions, which leads to a lot of social stress, and from my line of work, I have seen that it can lead to a lot of crime being committed as people need to feed this addiction.
Aside from Peter Holmes a Court, I haven’t heard any other club CEO or official from Sydney NRL actually say that this is not on…or have there been other voices clamouring for poker machine money to stop flowing?
Treizistes said | July 25th 2008 @ 4:08pm | Report comment
I’m sick of unionistas going on about League like this, at every damn site be it planet Rugby, LU, Total RL or whatever4, these arseholes spew the same stuff continually.
No wonder most leaguies want to see union die.
High Moral Ground?
Unionistas, read this as Jesus weeped.
http://forums.leagueunlimited.com/showthread.php?t=162445
Zac Zavos said | July 25th 2008 @ 4:10pm | Report comment
Treizistes – I’ve tried to email you. Your recent comments have been deleted. Please contact us (http://www.theroar.com.au/about).
Zac
The Roar
Westy said | July 25th 2008 @ 4:12pm | Report comment
I can only make judgements on the men I have dealt with. Our rugby club in Western Sydney had a seriously injured player. We had a fund raiser. Due to unfortunate circumstances our invited rugby guest could not attend. At very short notice the Parramatta EELs were contacted and sent two of their senior players Burt and Hindmarsh. They stayed for several hours told stories and helped raise funds. The Penrith Panthers and their reading and classroom programmes for Kids is an outstanding success as is Priddis work for autistic children.
The rugby school one of my sons attends in Castle Hill has been visited so many times by League players it is not funny. AFL is next but we are still hoping for rugby. Do not ever compare rugby committment to my local community with League.
I in know way defend the poor behaviour of any man . However I am patently aware that league is stereotyped not only by the conduct but by bias and outright predjudice. The Fairfax press went for 3 days on one brawl in an U/13 League game imagine the field day it would have sadly five young men had died playing league as in NZ since 2001. We would never hear the end of it.
You hypocritical bastards should look at French Club rugby mindless brawlsand gutless acts are the norm.
Westy said | July 25th 2008 @ 4:21pm | Report comment
Lefty
I have played football since I stopped playing semi professional RL and Union (was offered a place at Eastwood back in the early 70’s chose not to accept)
Played now I guess for over 30 years, been watching sport, Football. Union, Cricket, RL, ……… felt most unsafe at cricket …….. feel the safest your words at the A-League. Stop the stero types.
As for it being the force ………… I was waiting for that sorry its was the tahs pissing in a cab in SA. ………. See my point pick on a point and keep hounding on it untill it becomes the truth. So now we have 50% of union out of control.
Yes the football story on the 3 player roit was taken back but only after some time and today if a football story has any volience in it it becomes a roit …….. read can you smell the fear by Simon Hill.
Stero typing is simply wrong and while RL is no where near my first game or prefence as a sports person I cannot justify the acts of a few being associated with the whole ………. simple as that.
Westy said | July 25th 2008 @ 7:55pm | Report comment
agree with sentiment of above post but it is not my post!
Westy said | July 25th 2008 @ 8:07pm | Report comment
Has anyone told this bloke the AFL clubs combined earn more revenue from pokies than NRLclubs combined. God I hate this hypocrisy. .
LeftArmSpinner said | July 25th 2008 @ 8:07pm | Report comment
Zac, thanks for that. It is good to see that the Roar also has the no dickheads policy. I am very surprised by the reaxction to this article. To me, the solution was a no brainer.
Steve Kaless said | July 25th 2008 @ 8:34pm | Report comment
Left Arm,
I’m not going to go through your post point by point because, quite frankly I have work to do. However, because you are waiting for a response I’ll make an abridged comment.
My point, and I think it I thought it was fairly clear, was not that the players hadn’t done the wrong thing but that there is no point blaming the code for these problems because 1. they exist in other codes 2. they exist in society as a whole.
Players in rugby league are routinely fined and punished for their off field behaviour, Mark Gasnier for example was fined $30,000 for his mobile phone episode while with NSW (is this the ‘players of class’ you refer to?) Gower was fined heavily as was Willie Mason while at the Bulldogs, more than $50,000 if my memory serves me correctly.
There are also countless players who have had their contracts torn up by clubs.
I’m wondering if you can tell me what players who are referring haven’t been punished by their clubs?
Should any player involved in a punch up have their contracts shredded? Those players will be suspended and will be forced to serve them. You seem unaware that the game has a judicary.
Of course, it damages the game when this stuff gets dragged through the press, mostly because there are plenty of people who just love blowing many of these things out of proportion. Certainly you’ll agree that the media has been prone to a beat-up with this stuff.
Perhaps the general policy is that the ‘no dickheads policy’ is great in theory but how hard it is to know that about a player when you sign him. Who would have known that so many Western Force players would love throwing quokkas?
Rugby league faces problem players and deals with them, like every code. Perhaps what I find perhaps a little boring is that every time it happens people feel the need the scream from the heavens and make out they have had a brain wave with the “no dick-heads” policy.
No club goes out of there way to sign dickheads.
Finally, I would never take myself so seriously I to believe I represent rugby league. I am but a humble fan, like the hundreds of thousands of others.
Andrew Marks,
I agree that codes of conduct are a good thing, what a pity they needed to come about, of course they aren’t exclusive to rugby union. The junior rugby league, football and basketball competitions that I am involved in all have the same.
Redb said | July 25th 2008 @ 8:34pm | Report comment
Westy,
Your comments re AFL clubs and pokies is wrong. Pokies revenue is a relatively recent revenue additon for AFL clubs, most raise revenue through club memberships (574,000 Australia wide) , gate takings (ave crowds 38,000) and sponsorship. Sydney NRL clubs have always relied on Leagues clubs for revenue.
In saying that, I dont think you can directly link poor player behaviour with how a sporting club raises funds.
Redb
Sledgeandhammer said | July 25th 2008 @ 9:12pm | Report comment
Whether or not you agree with this particular article, I cannot for the life of me understand why so many league supporters feel so hardly done by. I can’t think of any other code that gets as much media love and attention than rugby league does in Sydney, and has had in Sydney for many, many years. There is literally a whole media industry built around the promotion of rugby league. So guys, get a grip.
Furthermore, the idea that rugby is only played by the leather patch brigade is also rubbish. Having played against teams like Dundas Valley (with the Price brothers running the water) and having seen the passion for rugby in the bush I can tell you this cliche is rubbish.
And by the way, in answer to Westy’s question about who supports club rugby, I do. This year the standard is as good as I can remember, crowds seem to be growing, the Wallabies are back in club colours, future looks bright…
Andrew Marks said | July 27th 2008 @ 9:32am | Report comment
Well done to Canberra Raiders in their considered, measured and completely appropriate handling of Carney.
LeftArmSpinner said | August 8th 2008 @ 12:22pm | Report comment
hooray to the raiders for their decision to cut Carney loose. everyone is a winner, including carney, yes, including carney.
the club can now commit resources to building a team on a no dick heads policy.. “we sacked our play maker, so dont try to get away with anything of you will be out too!”
The players know exactly where they stand with the club.
the NRL has come to the party and ensured that canberra wont be competing with carney just because they did the right thing. The NRL removes a serial pest from the game. they wont need to commit their resources to patching further unseemly behaviour from carney.
Carney could win if he wises up and realises that his behaviour is a real problem for himself!!!!
LeftArmSpinner said | August 25th 2008 @ 10:24am | Report comment
It is one month to the day that this article was posted and here we go again. A repetition of the Carney situation.
A serial offender, this time Greg Bird from Cronulla. Glassing your G/F, phew, not just physical abuse but potentially she will lose sight in one eye!!!
But there is more, Bird then lied to the club and got them to go public with that lie. That is a full house in card terms: assault over lies!!!! Carey over Didak!!
Over to Cronulla. Lets watch what they do. They failed previously. Will they fail again? The impact this time is much greater this time: The semi’s. His behaviour affects the team, the club, the district and the code.
Compare this to the Raiders. They belatedly took their medicine, and got on with playing passionate footy. The result is clear. A stronger team and a lower risk of having their efforts derailed by a selfish, piss head criminal.
Of course, the alchohol companies are major sponsors of NRL. Go figure the message it is sending to their audience!!!
If they had half a brain, but they probably don’t, they would reconsider their funding.
Meanwhile, the code will be further tainted and distracted in the next week or so and then on through to the court hearings.
LeftArmSpinner said | September 1st 2008 @ 11:48am | Report comment
Now we have McKinnon spitting at a linesman!!!! after pushing the ref previously and getting rubbed out for a few weeks!
LeftArmSpinner said | September 4th 2008 @ 9:16am | Report comment
well, The Judiciary decides that he did spit at a linesman, having been rubbed out for pushing a ref previously and yet only gets 3 weeks for it, a serial offender!!!!! Bad decision, particularly for refs!!
LeftArmSpinner said | September 16th 2008 @ 3:32pm | Report comment
Here we go again, this time three Broncos and a sexual assault allegation during the semis……